The Government of the Faroe Islands has rejected calls from Canada to withdraw the objection to the NAFO division of 3L shrimp under threat of renewed port closures by Canada to Faroese and Greenlandic fishing vessels. The Faroese position is fully supported by the Government of Greenland, with whom the Faroe Islands participate jointly in NAFO.

 

In a letter to the Canadian Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, Gail Shea late last week, Mr. Jørgen Niclasen, Minister of Foreign Affairs, stressed that his government continues to be committed to working within NAFO towards an equitable allocation of 3L shrimp in the interests of the sustainable management of the stock. Minister Niclasen expressed his concern and disappointment with Canada’s return to a unilateral, confrontational approach to the issue.  

 

In discussions over the past 2 years, Canada and other NAFO Parties have finally conceded that the original decision in 1999 to share 3L shrimp equally among Parties in international waters, regardless of their real interest in the fisheries, was an inappropriate management measure. Canada and other NAFO Parties have also recognised that the Faroe Islands, whose shrimp fleet has had a significant role in developing the fishery, are entitled to a larger share.  

 

“The outstanding issue is to find consensus within NAFO on how to bridge the remaining gap between expectations for respective shares in a lasting allocation”, says Minister Niclasen.

 

“Reverting to threats of port closures can only be seen as counterproductive to our common goal of agreeing on responsible management approaches in NAFO”, says Minister Niclasen. “Previous port closures by Canada targeting Faroese and Greenlandic vessels have only served to cloud the negotiation climate and create a serious barrier to constructive dialogue.”

 

Minister Niclasen expresses his hope that the Canadian fisheries minister is prepared to re-engage in discussions on the basis of the progress made in shrimp discussion in recent years - and in the spirit of a greater mutual cooperation, both bilaterally with Canada and within NAFO.  Minister Niclasen urges the Canadian fisheries minister to reconsider her decision and work constructively with the Faroe Islands and Greenland to bring the issue back to the table in NAFO.

 

·         The Faroe Islands and Greenland have joint membership of NAFO as the Contracting Party referred to as Denmark (in respect of the Faroe Islands and Greenland). As autonomous territories within the Kingdom of Denmark, the Faroe Islands and Greenland have exclusive competence over their respective fisheries management policies, including through participation in multilateral fisheries organisations such as NAFO. Denmark’s interests as a fisheries nation are covered by their membership of the EU, which is a Contracting Party to NAFO. The Faroe Islands and Greenland are not encompassed by Denmark’s membership of the European Union.

 

·         Unlike other NAFO decisions on quota or effort allocation, the present NAFO division of shrimp in 3L takes no account of the interests of Commission members whose vessels have traditionally fished in the area, which is the fundamental criterion in NAFO decisions. A small portion of the total allowable catch, of which Canada is allocated 83%, is shared evenly between the other 11 Contracting Parties, regardless of whether they have a history, capacity or even an interest in fishing the stock in question.

 

·         The autonomous quota of 3L shrimp set by Denmark (in respect of the Faroe Islands and Greenland) for 2010 and reported to NAFO is 3,101 tons. This is roughly 10% of the total TAC of 30,000. The level of this fishing limitation has been determined with a basis in NAFO’s own allocation criteria and it remains at the same level proportionate to the level of the TAC as in previous years.